Health Matters: Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease

Nearly five million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease. The most recognized symptom is repeated memory loss.

Dr. John Sullivan, a neurologist on staff at Lee Memorial Health System, says Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative condition, caused by an abnormal accumulation of proteins within the brain. Patients are typically over the age of 60 when they start to notice symptoms.

Other than memory loss, Dr. Sullivan says patients with Alzheimer’s could experience difficulty planning and prioritizing, trouble thinking, or even have behavioral or personality change. Experts say it’s important to get tested for the disease, as other conditions, like dementia, can mimic Alzheimer’s. “There are numerous conditions we have to think about to rule out. We don’t want to just put a stamp of an automatic Alzheimer’s disease on a patient when in fact it could be something else,” said Dr. Sullivan.

Dementia is also a neurodegenerative condition with almost matching symptoms as Alzheimer’s. In fact, 70 percent of dementia is Alzheimer’s. “There could be a lot of overlap, so again it relies on a very careful ability to discern what the exact problem is with the history and neurological testing that we do,” said Dr. Sullivan.

Patients undergo extensive testing including memory tests, brain scans, even blood work. “The problem is there’s no one single test, by blood work or any readily available test that will prove with 100 percent certainty that the patient does have Alzheimer’s,” said Dr. Sullivan.

They also examine the patient’s family history. “With a single first degree relative it’s probably an increased risk with maybe 2 to 5 percent of patients developing Alzheimer’s. If there are multiple family members in that family with it then that increase continues to rise a little bit.

While Alzheimer’s is a common diagnosis, health experts say there’s limited treatment available but a healthy lifestyle will help them manage their symptoms. “Hopefully, we will see emerging treatments within the next few years. We’re waiting for those eagerly,” said Dr. Sullivan.